The present application relates to washing and cleaning agents which have fine microparticles with cleaning agent components, to the use thereof and to a process for their preparation.
Washing and cleaning agents suitable for the cleaning of hard and soft surfaces are well known in the prior art. Washing and cleaning agents which have the cleaning agent components in solid form, including, for example, powders, tablets and solutions and gels which comprise solid particles, have the disadvantage that there is the risk of gelling when such particles are dissolved.
Thus, washing and cleaning agent particles during the dispersion and dissolution process have a “corona” around the washing agent particles at the start of the dissolution phase in the aqueous medium after a dissolution time of a few minutes. This is a gel phase, often with liquid-crystalline phases, which can considerably hinder the further diffusion process and thus the dissolution rate (=gelling effect).
Thus, particularly in the case of washing agents during the dissolution of cleaning agent active substances, for example surfactants or the like, gelling arises in the dosing compartment or in the wash liquor.
The gelling of cleaning agent active substances leads to poorer dispersibility, reduced solubility, inhomogeneous distribution in the wash liquor, impaired cleaning action, and the formation of cleaning agent residues in the dosing compartment and/or on clothing.
A further disadvantage of these washing and cleaning agents known in the prior art is that the particles used customarily in washing and cleaning agents lead, as a result of their size, to significant concentration differences in the washing and cleaning agent and consequently also at the site of use, even where the inhomogeneity of the washing and cleaning agent composition is low. This can impair the cleaning performance.
In order to counteract this effect, the washing and cleaning agents often have an excessively high content of cleaning agent active substances, fragrances, dyes and the like.
Another disadvantage of the solid washing agents known in the prior art is that high proportions of nonionic surfactant lead to sticky washing agents. It is, however, specifically the nonionic surfactants which have excellent cleaning performances particularly in the case of fat-like soilings.
A high proportion of nonionic surfactants can, if the surfactants are distributed inhomogeneously and are located specifically at the particle surface, lead to inadequate ability to be stored in silos and/or to poor pourability, pumpability or flowability as a result of clumping.
A further disadvantage with solid washing and cleaning agents is that excessively large particles often have poor dissolution behavior.
Finally, in the case of solid washing agents, fragrances are usually sprayed onto the surface of the product following preparation of the powder or granulate in a downstream process step. A disadvantage of this process is that the fragrance is not incorporated by it into the powder or granulate, and thus can readily evaporate from the surface. In order to maintain an adequately perceptible scent of the washing and cleaning agent over a prolonged period of use at the site of use, the fragrance is therefore overdosed in order to counteract increased evaporation.
An object of the present invention is to overcome the disadvantages given above in the prior art.
This object is achieved according to the invention by washing and cleaning agents, where the washing and cleaning agent comprises fine microparticles, where the fine microparticles have one or more cleaning agent components.
Further advantageous embodiments are listed in the dependent claims, to which reference is made in their entirety.